March 17
1800s *1871 - The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players is established in New York, New York. The entry fee is $10 to compete for one season. *1884 - The Union Association admits the Boston Unions club organized by George Wright, bringing the number of teams to eight. The UA also decides to stick with the seven-ball walk rule, and the schedule is expanded to 112 games and adopts the percentage system for determining the champion team. The regular season opens with three games. Baltimore Monumentals pitcher Bill Sweeney throws a five-hitter, 7–3 victory over the Washington Nationals. It is the first of what will be a season-high 40 victories for Sweeney, 12 more than his closest rival Hugh Daily. *1886 - The Sporting News, the weekly that will become "The Baseball Paper of the World," publishes its first issue. 1900s 1910s *1911 - Plumbers at work on the drain pipes at Washington's Griffith Stadium start a fire that burns down the grandstand. Since the water has been shut off, fireman can do nothing. Stands will be rebuilt to play the home opener on schedule. *1919 - The Boston Red Sox, minus holdouts Carl Mays and Babe Ruth, sail from New York aboard the [[List of all ships of the United States Navy, A|USS Arapahoe]]. The trip to spring training is stormy and most of the players will be seasick. Ruth will sign on the 21st in New York and leave the night for Florida. Mays, unsigned will join Ruth and the Sox in Tampa. 1920s *1921: **The New York Yankees, training in Shreveport, Louisiana, journey to Lake Charles to play a game against the St. Louis Cardinals, based in Orange, Texas. The game was proclaimed "Ruth-Hornsby Day," but Hornsby hits only a single while Ruth lofts a home run over the short right field fence. The Yankees win 14–5. **Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Gene Paulette, ordered to appear before Commissioner Landis regarding alleged gambling, decides to retire from Organized Ball instead. He signs with a Massillon, Ohio semipro team. *1927 - In a battle of Irish managers on St. Patrick's Day, the St. Louis Cardinals of Bob O'Farrell beat the New York Giants of John McGraw, 3–0, in a Grapefruit League contest. Cardinals manager O'Farrell also clouts a home run. 1930s *1936 -Much-heralded rookie Joe DiMaggio makes his debut with the New York Yankees, collecting four hits including a triple. The day is marred when the St. Louis Cardinals win 8–7. 1940s *1940 - An inter-league exhibition All-Star Game is played in Florida for the benefit of Finland, which has been attacked by the Soviet Union. Over $20,000 is raised, but the Finlanders give up their battle within a few days of the benefit. *1946 - In Daytona Beach, the Brooklyn Dodgers take the field against their minor-league farm team, the Montreal Royals. With Jackie Robinson in the lineup for Montreal, the game marks the first appearance of an integrated team in organized baseball in this century. A crowd of 3,100 attends the game at City Island Park, which will be renamed Jackie Robinson Stadium in 1990. 1950s *1953: **Bill Veeck says that he will accept an offer of $2.475 million for his 80 percent of the St. Louis Browns stock. Baltimore Mayor D'Alesandro seeks a syndicate to buy Veeck out. The group will eventually purchase 206,250 shares at $12 per share. **Milwaukee County Stadium will be available to the Boston Braves at a very reasonable rental rate. 1960s *1965 - Jackie Robinson is signed as a member of the ABC-TV MLB broadcast team, becoming the first black broadcaster to receive a network position in baseball. ABC provides the first-ever nationwide baseball coverage with weekly Saturday broadcasts on a regional basis. *1966 - Pitchers Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale play hardball when negotiating with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The duo signs movie contracts showing they are serious about retiring from baseball if their salary demands are not met. *1969 - The St. Louis Cardinals trade former National League MVP Orlando Cepeda to the Atlanta Braves for catcher/first baseman Joe Torre. The trade will benefit both teams; Cepeda will help the Braves make the playoffs in 1969 and Torre will win the MVP in 1971. 1970s *1972 - In Caracas, Venezuela, the Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates play the first of a three-game series. *1976 - Commissioner Bowie Kuhn orders teams to open spring training camps as soon as possible. All teams will comply within 48 hours. *1977 - U.S. Federal Judge Frank McGarr rules in favor of Bowie Kuhn, saying that the baseball commissioner acted within his authority in voiding the 1976 player sales engineered by Oakland Athletics owner Charlie Finley. *1978 - For the St. Patrick's Day exhibition game, the Cincinnati Reds wear special green uniforms, rather than their traditional red, starting an annual ritual. The good luck works and the Reds beat the New York Yankees 9–2. The St. Louis Cardinals, between other teams, will be the next to follow suit. Although the Reds will never use the uniforms in regular season play, the green colors will become a spring training tradition for the team that will last a few seasons. 1980s *1984 - Ferguson Jenkins announces his retirement. A Cy Young Award winner, in a 19-season major career Jenkins posted a record with strikeouts and a 3.34 ERA in innings pitched. He will be elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America in 1991. *1988 - Recently acquired slugger Jack Clark tears a calf tendon while hitting a home run for the New York Yankees in an exhibition game. The oft-injured Clark had signed a free agent contract during the winter. He will miss the start of the season, but will return to hit 27 home runs with 93 RBI. 1990s *1992 - Pitcher Hal Newhouser and umpire Bill McGowan are elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee. *1999 - The Toronto Blue Jays fire manager Tim Johnson and replace him with Jim Fregosi. Johnson had been under fire since admitting he had lied when he said he was a Vietnam War veteran. 2000s *2001 - Third baseman Joe Randa agrees to a two-year contract extension with the Kansas City Royals. Randa batted .304 with 106 RBI for the Royals in 155 games last season. *2005 During more than 11 hours of the Committee on Government Reform hearing concerning major league player use of steroids, Mark McGwire refuses to talk about the past and does not deny taking performance enhancing drugs. Other players testifying included Curt Schilling, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro, and former big leaguer José Canseco, whose recent book prompted the congressional hearing. *2006: **Government of South Korea decided to exempt national baseball team members competing at the World Baseball Classic from mandatory military service as a reward for advancing to the tournament's semifinals. In a sour note, pitcher Myung Hwan Park tested positive for a banned substance and was thrown out of the Classic, MLB said in a statement. **Washington Nationals reliever Luis Ayala, who faced only one batter in his final appearance in the WBC, will have reconstructive surgery on his right elbow and is expected to miss the entire season. **Toronto Blue Jays starter Roy Halladay signed a three-year, $40 million contract extension that will keep him with the club through the 2010 season. Births *1860 - Fred Pfeffer, player and manager (d. 1932) *1883 - Oscar Stanage, catcher (d. 1964) *1899 - Charlie Root, pitcher (d. 1970) *1906 - Hy Vandenberg, pitcher (d. 1994) *1917 - Hank Sauer, All-Star outfielder (d. 2001) *1919 - Pete Reiser, All-Star outfielder (d. 1981) *1923 - Pat Seerey, outfielder (d. 1986) *1938 - Jimmie Hall, All-Star outfielder *1944 - Cito Gaston, All-Star outfielder and manager *1956 - Tim Lollar, pitcher *1956 - Rod Scurry, pitcher (d. 1992) *1959 - Danny Ainge, infielder *1965 - John Smiley, All-Star pitcher *1971 - Bill Mueller, infielder *1973 - Vance Wilson, catcher *1976 - Scott Downs, pitcher *1977 - Robb Quinlan, infielder Deaths *1944 - Rube Kroh, pitcher (b. 1886) *1959 - Howard Ehmke, pitcher (b. 1894) *1962 - Billy Purtell, infielder (b. 1886) *1981 - Paul Dean, pitcher (b. 1913) *1998 - Milo Candini, pitcher (b. 1917)